Leaders, Celebrities, Bid Adiós to Chávez

Hundreds of Thousands Hear Eulogy by Nicolás Maduro, Later Sworn In as Venezuela's Interim President Ahead of Vote

WSJ's Mexico City Bureau Chief David Luhnow provides an overview of the late Venezuelan president's rule. For an in-depth look, watch:"Strongman - Hugo Chavez and His Legacy, A WSJ Documentary." Photo by David Fernandez.

By

Kejal Vyas and

Ezequiel Minaya

Updated March 8, 2013 3:00 p.m. ET

CARACAS—Actor Sean Penn, former baseball slugger Magglio Ordóñez, and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad joined hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans in Caracas on Friday to bid farewell to the late President Hugo Chávez, the boisterous and charismatic figure who ruled the oil-rich country for 14 years.

A two-hour state funeral kicked off just after noon at the Fort Tiuna military base where Mr. Chávez spent his formative years in the army, forging friendships with other young officers who would follow him in a failed coup in 1992, then to prison and, finally, to power.

The funeral also served as a coming-out party for Vice President Nicolás Maduro, who delivered an emotional eulogy, his voice breaking at times. Mr. Maduro, a 50-year-old former bus driver and union organizer, Mr. Maduro, a 50-year-old former bus driver and union organizer, was sworn in as interim president later on Friday and is favored to capture the presidency in snap elections due next month.

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Supporters of the late President Hugo Chavez are seen outside of his funeral in Caracas on Friday. Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

Standing near a flag-draped coffin with Mr. Chávez's body dressed in military uniform, Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. offered a prayer to the attendees. Venezuelan conductor Gustavo Dudamel led a symphony orchestra preceded by a performance of joropo, the harp-heavy folk music of Venezuela's interior grasslands, where Mr. Chávez was from and where he said he longed to be buried.

More than 50 delegations from governments around the world had arrived to offer their respects, Foreign Minister Elias Jaua said. Among them were dozens of world leaders, ranging from democratically elected presidents like Brazil's Dilma Rousseff to a handful of autocrats befriended by the late Venezuelan strongman, including Mr. Ahmadinejad, Cuba's Raúl Castro, and Belarus's Alexander Lukashenko.

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China, which has given Venezuela around $40 billion in loans over the past several years, sent the head of its National Development and Reform Commission.

Mr. Ahmadinejad, who arrived in Venezuela overnight, called Mr. Chávez "a symbol of all who look for love, kindness and peace in the world….For me he was a brother and dear friend. I feel like I've lost a part of myself."

When the Iranian leader was introduced, he received a raucous applause from those in attendance.

From Coup Leader to President

Huge crowds, with many people clad in trademark Chavista red, gathered near the military academy, while vendors hawked T-shirts, hats and posters with images of the late president. A giant inflatable doll of Mr. Chávez floated over one of many flat-screen TV sets set up for people to watch the funeral nearby, while music blasted with the refrain frequently heard since his death: "Chávez lives! The struggle continues!"

Vilma Nuñez, 50, clad all in red with a pendant of Chávez around her neck, watched the ceremony on one of the large screens. "He deserves all these honors, really it's very little for how much he loved us," said Ms. Nuñez, a housewife. "He's physically left, but really, he's still with us," she added.

Friday's funeral won't be mourners' last opportunity to see Mr. Chávez, who is due to be embalmed and placed on permanent display at the Museum of the Revolution in Caracas. Historians say the move—which follows in the footsteps of autocrats like Russia's Vladimir Lenin and China's Mao Zedong—isn't surprising given the cult of personality favored by Mr. Chávez.

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Reporter Kejal Vyas and Carl Meacham of the Center for Strategic and International Studies look ahead to Venezuelan politics and its relations with the U.S. following the death of president Hugo Chávez. Photo: Getty Images.

Other attendees at the chapel ceremony were Venezuelan-born Formula One racer Pastor Maldonado and fencer Ruben Limardo, who beat the world's top fencers to win gold at the London OlympicsThe U.S. delegation was made up of James Derham, its chargé d'affaires in Caracas, U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks (D., N.Y.) and former lawmaker William Delahunt of Massachusetts.

The turnout Friday was part funeral, part political rally. A loudspeaker alternatively played a young child reciting patriotic poetry and an adult voice issuing a scathing critique of the opposition. "They will not return [to power]," the voice thundered over the PA system.

Mr. Maduro, during his remarks, welcomed the U.S. delegation and said "We love all the peoples of the Americas but we want relations of [mutual] respect."

Earlier this week, he lashed out at the U.S., kicking out two military attachés for allegedly trying to destabilize the country and even blaming Washington for Mr. Chávez's cancer. Mr. Maduro will likely face off against opposition leader Henrique Capriles, who lost to Mr. Chávez in October elections and is seen in many ways having to run against the spirit of the former tank commander all over again.

Mr. Capriles said on Friday he would decide on his candidacy, "in coming days."

Analysts expect Mr. Maduro to comfortably triumph over any opposition challenge, riding the wave of sympathy that is likely to be passed on to Mr. Chavez's aides.

Luisa Silva, a 35-year-old social worker, said she had no doubt that Mr. Maduro would get the full backing of the late president's supporters.

"We're sad to lose him but he's already inside our hearts, in our souls forever. He wanted us to vote for Maduro, so that's what we'll do," Ms. Silva said.

Mr. Chávez's death on Tuesday was no surprise as he struggled with an undisclosed type of cancer for nearly two years and dropped out from the public eye for nearly three months while in hospital. His passing will be a setback to the leftist and "anti-imperialist" causes that he sponsored at home and abroad using Venezuela's vast petro-wealth.

More than two million people have mobilized to take part in the funeral procession that started Wednesday when Mr. Chávez's coffin was paraded around the streets. State officials have declared a weeklong mourning period and plan to keep Mr. Chávez's body in state until late next week due to the large turnout of mourners.

"I'm here to show my Comandante my appreciation. He gave me my house," said Liset Cira, a homemaker from Los Teques and beneficiary of the social programs financed by the rise in international oil prices that took place during Mr. Chávez's rule.

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